Lessok
by Portius
Summary: Lessok, a member of the bloody caste of Hallifax, hunts down a traitor in the city's lower wards. An epyllion written in the Hallifaxian style.


If I may beg you to remember your pains  
inflicted by cowards, fools, and the ones  
who flee your embrace, then I shall sing  
of black-hearted treason, highest of crimes,  
and he who bore the grim lash of justice,  
cold-hearted Lessok, a bloody caste comrade.  
Lessok pursued him, the one they called Maithoh  
who had drunk deep of the mind-numbing wine  
and tasted strange drugs, the slayers of reason  
and found a taste for such things, came into the thrall  
of the smoke-shrouded city, he sold secrets for more.  
Mindless Maithoh had fled down to the lowest wards  
and Lessok pursued him, walked with measured steps  
went with prudent caution, went without haste.  
Lessok searched for a witness, one who had seen  
the traitor's retreat, seen where he had fled  
and he found such a witness, he was halfway to treason.  
Lessok spoke to that witness, his voice cold and clear.  
"Speak now my comrade, and tell me the truth.  
You have seen a man fleeing, men call him Maithoh  
though you may not know him by name, you've seen his face  
marred by decay, with a mouth full of rot  
and with eyes that are empty, surely you've seen him?"  
And the witness whispered words tinged with fear,  
"Stalwart spear-comrade, I can see in your face  
you have no lack of courage, fear does not hold you.  
Not so for us all. I fear the cruel wrath  
of the one that you seek, and those he calls friends.  
What if you fail, what if long time reveals me  
and Maithoh longs for revenge? Then I would perish  
and serve our spires no more, so I beg indulgence.  
Let me hold my silence, go ask another  
who has seen where he went, and get your answer  
from one without fear. Such men will assist you."  
Lessok took a long breath, banished his anger  
turned his mind on itself, maintained his control  
and spoke to the coward, spoke with calm words.  
"Quivering comrade, you need not have fear.  
The traitor will perish, that much I can swear  
and you shall live safely, for that is the duty  
of the bloody caste comrades, and we do not fail."  
With tears in his eyes, the witness addressed him,  
with fear in his voice, the witness gave his reply.  
"Noble shield-comrade, I think it is doubtless  
that you mean what you say, and yet I feel fear.  
Will you have mercy on me, and let me be silent,  
I who wish only to serve in the safest of ways?"  
Calming his wrath, Lessok spoke again softly  
with ice in his voice, he spoke one more time.  
"Fear is improper, you must cast it aside  
lest it make you serve poorly. It cannot rule you.  
Now speak what you saw, and now speak it quickly  
or I shall do my grim duty, do you know what that is?  
I shall grasp your hand tightly, and ask you again  
what you have seen, and if you are still silent  
I shall take your finger, and snap one small bone  
and then in your pain, I shall ask you again  
what you have seen, and if you are still silent  
I shall do it again, and snap a second small bone.  
If still you are silent, then I'll know the truth  
that you lied before, that you are no coward  
and some other thought has held your lips closed  
and I shall take the knife that I wear on my belt  
slide it under your nails, lever them upwards  
one at a time, until at last you shall yield.  
Duty demands that, and my duty binds me  
though I weep in my heart to cause such a pain  
to a comrade of Hallifax, it shall be done.  
So speak, my comrade, and tell me the truth  
that we two need not suffer, speak out at once."  
Then at last he learned where Maithoh had gone,  
the witness spoke quickly, said all that he knew  
and Lessok left him in silence, returned to the chase.  
He soon found the traitor, he had not fled far  
he favored concealment over swift flight  
but Lessok soon found him, his senses were keen.  
When Maithoh saw him, he broke down in tears  
and spoke to cold-hearted Lessok, pleaded for life.  
"Comrade, my comrade, you who I can call brother  
not for blood's sake, but by our shared devotion  
to our sweetest mother, to our shining spires.  
I have done a foul thing, I shall not deny it  
for lies do not become me, and truth is still sweet  
to a heart such as mine, I swear it is so.  
I repent what I have done, deep in my heart  
for I know it was evil, temptation held me  
I submitted to vice, my soul was too weak.  
Yet I am appalled by the things I have done  
and still wish to serve, that I might make amends  
for my black crimes. I beg you to let it be so."  
Lessok regarded him coldly, and spoke his soft words.  
"Our high laws have spoken. Would you deny them?  
There are no exceptions, that is well known.  
Our laws are heartless, and so they are pure.  
They were shaped by pure reason and they are not tempted  
by the foul fleeting passions that prey on us all  
and lead us to folly, to chaos, and strife.  
No, traitor Maithoh, do not plead for my mercy  
for I cannot grant it. Did you never learn  
that a law we ignore at our kind heart's urgings  
is no law at all? I shall weep for your death  
but it must be so. Law and order prevail.  
If you would serve, if that is your desire  
then one task lies before you, here is your duty.  
Lay down your life gently, do not resist me,  
die with all haste and return to the wheel."  
Maithoh paused for only a moment, then spoke a reply  
with hate in his voice and wrath in his eyes.  
"Slave of the spires, I'll show you the truth  
if words will not sway you, I'll break your mind  
and shatter your thoughts and show you strange sights  
and madness will take you, I shall make it so."  
Then treacherous Maithoh tossed strange dust in the air  
from a small pouch, it glittered gold in the light  
and both breathed it in, Maithoh and Lessok.  
Maithoh turned and he fled, his instincts ruled him  
fear urged him onward, that fear without thinking  
that drives beasts of the woods away from the hunter,  
mindless fear ruled him, and he fled away.  
Madness reached out for Lessok, grasped at his mind  
as the strange drug took hold, bending his senses.  
It showed him strange sights of blood and of slaughter  
and rioting colours, bright lights and deep shadows  
and creatures of terror, of blood-spilling death.  
All that was mingled with sights that were fairer  
of flesh and of life, which could bring desire  
if they were not mingled with horror and blood.  
It was more than sight that plagued cold-hearted Lessok  
he heard the sea in his ears, the shriek of the wind  
and the bleating of sheep being led to the slaughter.  
And he smelled decay, the scent filled the air  
and mingled quite freely with the heady perfumes  
of the desert-bound harlots, and beyond that  
he felt smoke in his lungs, burning and stinging,  
it was a plague on the senses, a pox on his mind.  
Lessok fell to his knees, he clutched at his head  
as he felt madness coming, he felt the grim fear  
of losing his mind, of shedding all virtue.  
It could not be so, for he longed to serve  
and mind-breaking madness is the death of all duty  
the worst of all passion, he knew that was true.  
He measured his breathing, took his breath slowly  
as he had been taught as a child, long years ago  
that he might make his soul still, conquer the madness  
and rule over his mind as all good men do.  
His panic faded, but his senses resisted  
plagued him with falsehoods, sought to lead him astray.  
He sought a distraction, turned his mind inward  
that he might recall what he knew to be true  
and ignore all the lies that danced in his senses.  
He pondered the past, the sweet recollections  
of those who served long ago, done their tasks well  
and were rightly honored for the deeds they had done.  
He thought of the paragons, and their fine example  
their virtues and deeds, that he might remember  
the virtues he had, and fight off the madness.  
He thought of wise Thairee, the Skypainter's shard  
she who had brought new sounds to the spires,  
new instruments of her own devising  
which had at first seemed quite inharmonious  
but which had proven, in the fullness of time  
that their voices were sweet, and that their tones  
were revealed to be lovely, all they had required  
was some measure of practice, finely-honed skill.  
It had taken long years for her innovations  
to take their final shape, and in that time  
she had heard their ten thousand strange sounds.  
During her experimentation, she had not gone mad.  
With this recollection he focused his mind  
against the dozen strange tones he heard in his head  
and knew they would not harm him, they were not real  
and if true tones had been harmless to Thairee,  
why would false tones drive him mad? They were no threat.  
Then he thought of brave Tetek, no stranger to war  
who devised the shield wall, first ordered the lines  
of spear-comrades in battle, banished confusion  
from the blood-flooded fields of death-bringing war.  
He had known the truth, that the carrion stench  
of death and of pain, the screams of the wounded  
and the terrors of war need not beget madness  
if a mind could be trained to keep calm in the fight  
and trust in his comrades, then order could prevail  
even there, in the fierce grasp of grim war.  
With that thought in his mind Lessok rallied his senses  
and cast the madness aside, trusted his training,  
focused his mind on what he knew to be certain  
and ignored all the rest, thought of his duty.  
Lessok rose up on his feet, grasped his spear tightly  
and turned to his task, he began his pursuit  
and ran with great haste and with a clear mind.  
He soon found his foe, Maithoh moved without haste  
for the drug still held his mind, so he was senseless  
and had fled in a panic, fled without direction,  
fleeing in circles, he had not fled very far.  
Lessok addressed him, spoke in his cold voice,  
"Now, traitor Maithoh, now stand and be ended  
for the deeds you have done have earned you grim death,  
as the law has decreed, so it must be."  
Having spoken those words, Lessok struck out with his spear  
pieced Maithoh's legs, the traitor fell to his knees.  
Then cold-hearted Lessok laid his spear on the ground  
and grasped Maithoh firmly, that he might be punished  
in the traditional way. Lessok bound his arms tightly  
and without any words brought him to the path's edge  
and turned his eyes for a moment to the unfeeling sky.  
Then his mind turned to action, Lessok grasped the wings  
which had once been white, but had long been neglected  
in favor of treason, and had many dark stains.  
Lessok took those wings in his hand, and drawing a knife  
cut each one away from the foul traitor's shoulders  
and laid them down gently as he spoke soft words.  
"Treacherous Maithoh, you have been condemned  
in accord with the law, now your death has come.  
As the law has decreed, I bring you your end  
Lessok has killed you, now return to the wheel."  
Speaking those words, looking down at the sky  
he cast the treacherous Maithoh into empty air  
and cast the bloody wings down after their master  
who fell from the spires in drug-addled silence.


End file.
